Remarks by the President at Troy, Ohio Rally
Troy Public Square
Troy, Ohio

10:42 A.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: Thanks for coming. Thank you for bringing your
families. Thanks for taking time out of your Saturday morning to
provide such a warm welcome to somebody who is coming here to ask for
your help and ask for your vote. (Applause.) I'm proud to be in Miami
County, Ohio today kick off a bus tour across your important state.
I'm here to say to you, I'm ready to lead this nation for four more
years, and I want your help. (Applause.)

Boehner said if you came to this part of the world, some people
might show up to say hello. (Applause.) He was right, and I'm
grateful. Thanks for being here. I'm proud to call John Boehner my
friend. I know you're proud to call him Congressman. He's doing a
great job on the people of this part of the world, and I appreciate
serving with him.

I wish Laura were here to see the size of this crowd. (Applause.)
She's not going to believe when I tell her how many people came.
(Applause.) She's going to say it was just a Texas tall tale. Laura
is a great mother, a wonderful wife, a terrific First Lady.
(Applause.) I'm going to give you some reasons why I hope you put me
back into office today, but perhaps the most important one of all is so
that Laura will be the First Lady for four more years. (Applause.)

I'm proud of my running mate, Dick Cheney. (Applause.) Listen, I
didn't pick him because of his wavy hair. (Laughter.) I picked him
because of his sound judgment, his vast experience. I picked him
because he can get the job done. (Applause.)

I want to thank Governor Bob for joining us today. Mr. Governor,
thank you for joining me on this bus trip. We're traveling across this
great state of yours, shaking as many hands as possible, looking people
in the eye, and saying, I've got a clear vision of where I want to take
this country. (Applause.)

I want to thank Senator Mike DeWine for being on this bus trip with
me today. (Applause.) I appreciate working with Mike and the other
Senator, George Voinovich. Put George back in there for six years.
You need him in the state of Ohio. (Applause.) Mike wisely brought
his wife, Fran, and daughter, Anna. I'm proud to be traveling with
them, as well. I want to thank Secretary of State Ken Blackwell for
joining us today. (Applause.)

Mr. Mayor is with us. Mr. Mayor, His Honor, Mike Beamish, is with
us. Mr. Mayor, thank you for your hospitality. (Applause.) I
appreciate you letting us use this fantastic town square. Such a
beautiful sight, made more beautiful by the fact that a lot of your
citizens have come here today. (Applause.) My only advice, Mr. Mayor,
is make sure you fill the potholes. (Laughter.)

I appreciate Don McLaurin, the Mayor of Trotwood, Ohio, for being
here. I want to thank all the local officials. I want to thank the
Troy High Marching Band for being here today. (Applause.)

Today, when we landed in Dayton, I met Becky Brown. (Applause.)
She brought some of her cousins with her. (Laughter.) Becky is the
one millionth person to sign up as a volunteer in the Bush-Cheney '04
effort. (Applause.) That means, she's willing to put up signs and
willing to get on the phone and willing to work and turn out the vote.

See, we have a duty in our country to vote. We have an obligation
to participate in the political process. So I'm here to thank all of
you all who are involved in the grassroots efforts here in Ohio. I
want to thank you for going to your community centers and your places
of worship and where you work, and saying to your friends and
neighbors, register to vote. It's important you do so. And then after
you get them registered, remind them to vote. And as they start
heading to the polls, tell them if they want an administration that's
going to make this country safer, stronger and better, put Dick Cheney
and me back in office. (Applause.)

Listen, we have done a lot in this country. We've accomplished a
great deal.

AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: We have been through -- we've been through a lot
together. And we've accomplished a lot. But there's only one reason
to look backward, and that is to determine who best to lead us
forward. I'm here to tell you that all -- we've done a lot, we have
more to do. We have more to do to make this country a more secure
country. We have more to do to spread the peace. We have more to do
to make America a hopeful place for every single citizen.

And that starts with making sure our public schools are the centers
of excellence we know they can be. John Boehner mentioned the No Child
Left Behind Act. I want to take you back three-and-a-half years ago to
a system that simply moved children through year after year, grade
after grade, without teaching the basics. So we challenged the soft
bigotry of low expectations. We raised the bar, because we know every
child can learn to read and write, and add and subtract. We expect
every child to learn to read and write and add and subtract. We
increased federal funding, but we increased local control of schools
and accountability across America so not one child is left behind in
this country. (Applause.)

We're making progress. We're closing the achievement gap in
America, but there's more to do. We want to make sure math and
sciences are emphasized in our high schools, so our youngsters can be
able to participate in the jobs of the 21st century. We're going to
expand the Internet in the classrooms. We're going to make sure
there's early intervention programs available so kids don't slip
behind. We're going to make sure that a high school diploma means
something over the next four years. What I'm telling you is, four more
years of this administration will help a rising generation earn the
skills and confidence necessary to compete in a global world.
(Applause.)

We have more to do to make health care available and affordable.
When we came to office, you might remember all those political
campaigns, give us a chance, we'll fix Medicare for our seniors, we'll
make sure the system is strengthened and modern. But nothing ever got
done. We got the job done for the seniors of America. The Medicare
system gives seniors more choices. And starting in 2006, there will be
prescription drugs available for those on Medicare.

We're making progress when it comes to health care. We've expanded
the number of community centers that are available for low-income
Americans. We provided health savings accounts to encourage families
to save, tax-free, for their own needs. When it comes to making health
care more affordable and available, there is more work to be done over
the next four years. Most people get their health care through their
businesses. Most new jobs are created by small businesses. Many small
businesses are having trouble affording health care. Therefore, in
order to help American families, it makes sense to let small businesses
pool together and purchase insurance at the same discount that big
businesses are able to do. (Applause.)

We will harness technology to reduce costs and reduce error. We
will continue to expand research to seek new cures for diseases. And
I'll tell you what else you need to do, not only in Ohio, but around
the nation; we must stop these frivolous lawsuits that are running up
the cost of health care and driving docs out of business. (Applause.)
You cannot be pro-doctor and pro-patient and pro-hospital and
pro-plaintiff attorney at the same time. (Applause.) You have to make
your choice. My opponent made his choice, and he put him on the
ticket. I made my choice. I'm standing with the docs and patients. I
am for medical liability reform now. (Applause.) In all we do to
improve health care in America, we will make sure the health decisions
are made by doctors and patients, not by Washington, D.C. bureaucrats.
(Applause.)

We've got to make -- we've got to do more to make this economy
stronger. Listen, I understand there's places here in Ohio that are
lagging behind the national recovery. We will continue to work to
create an environment for jobs to grow so people can find work. But I
want to remind you, we've been through a lot in this country. We've
been through a recession and corporate scandals, and an attack on our
country. Yet, we're overcoming these obstacles. We're overcoming
these obstacles because the entrepreneurial spirit is strong in
America. We're overcoming these obstacles because America's farmers
and ranchers know what they're doing. We're coming over -- we're
overcoming these obstacles because we've got the greatest workers in
the world in this country. (Applause.) And I think we're overcoming
these obstacles because of well-timed tax cuts. (Applause.)

You might remember that tax relief. We said, if we're going to
provide tax relief, everybody who pays taxes gets relief. We're not
going to play politics with your wallet. We raised the child credit to
help moms and dads with raising their children. We reduced the
marriage penalty. I believe the tax code ought to encourage marriage,
not penalize marriage. (Applause.) We're helping our small
businesses, and it's working. Our economy has been growing at rates as
fast as any in nearly 20 years. We've added 1.5 million new jobs over
the past 12 months. The national unemployment rate is 5.5 percent,
which is lower than the national average of the 1970s, the 1980s, and
the 1990s. (Applause.)

We're headed in the right direction, but there's more work to be
done. In order to keep jobs here in America, this nation needs an
energy policy. We need to encourage conservation. We need to
encourage alternative uses of energy. But we need to be using Ohio
coal and Ohio natural gas to make us less dependent on foreign sources
of energy. (Applause.)

In order to make sure jobs stay here in Ohio and America, we're
going to make sure countries treat us the way we treat them when it
comes to trade. Our markets are open; they need to open up their
markets -- because American workers can compete with anybody, anyplace,
anytime in this world. (Applause.)

We need to get rid of these junk lawsuits that are threatening
small businesses all across America. (Applause.) We need to make sure
our regulatory system is reasonable and fair. In order to keep jobs
here in America, we've got to make sure American workers gain the
skills necessary to fill the jobs of the 21st century, which means we
will continue to use our community college systems as a place for
people to receive a lifetime of learning in America. (Applause.)

And finally, to make sure this economy grows and jobs stay here in
America, we've got to be wise about how we spend your money. And we've
got to keep your taxes low. (Applause.) Yes, we have a difference of
opinion in this race. I'm running against a fellow who has already
promised over $2 trillion of new spending.

AUDIENCE: Boooo!

THE PRESIDENT: And there's still September and October to go.
(Laughter.) He's got plenty of time to go out there and make more
promises. They said, how are you going to pay for it? He said, oh,
I'm going to tax the rich. You've heard that before, haven't you?
Every time they say, tax the rich, the rich dodge and you pay. But
we're not going to let him; we're going to beat him in November of this
year. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: I'm running -- I'm running because I know we have
more to do to wage and win the war against the terrorists. America's
future -- America's future depends on our willingness to lead in this
world. If America shows uncertainty or weakness in this decade, the
world will drift toward tragedy. This is not going to happen on my
watch. (Applause.)

The world changed on a terrible September morning, and since that
day we have changed the world. Before September the 11th, Afghanistan
served as the home base of al Qaeda, which trained and deployed
thousands of killers to set up cells around the world, including the
United States. Because we acted, Afghanistan is a rising democracy.
You realize, over 10 million people have registered to vote in the
presidential elections coming this fall in Afghanistan. (Applause.)
Because we acted, many young girls go to school for the first time in
that country. (Applause.) Because we acted, Afghanistan is an ally in
the war on terror. Because we acted, America and the world are safer.
(Applause.)

Before September the 11th, Libya was spending millions to acquire
weapons of mass destruction. Today, because America and our allies
have sent a strong and easy-to-understand message, the leader of Libya
has abandoned his pursuit of weapons of mass destruction, and America
and the world are safer. (Applause.)

Before September the 11th, the ruler of Iraq was a sworn enemy of
America. He was defying the world. He was firing missiles at American
pilots enforcing the world's sanctions. He had used weapons of mass
destruction. He harbored terrorists. He invaded his neighbors. He
subsidized the families of suicide bombers. He murdered tens of
thousands of his own citizens. He was a source of great instability in
the world's most volatile region.

I saw a threat. One of the important lessons of September the 11th
that this nation must never forget is that we must take threats
seriously before they fully materialize. (Applause.) I went to the
United States Congress. I said, I see a threat. They looked at the
same intelligence I had looked at. They looked at the same history of
Saddam Hussein and came to the same conclusion, as they authorized the
use of force. Republicans and Democrats alike saw a threat, including
my opponent.

I then went to the United Nations. Before a President is to commit
force, we must try all means necessary to solve a threat peacefully.
So I went to the United Nations. I said, we see a threat. They looked
at the same intelligence and, as they had for over a decade, they
concluded that Saddam Hussein was a threat. The U.N. Security Council
voted 15 to nothing to say to Saddam Hussein, disclose, disarm, or face
serious consequences. As he had for over a decade, he refused to
comply with the demands of the free world. As a matter of fact, he
systematically deceived the inspectors that were sent into his
country.

So I had a choice to make: Do I forget the lessons of September
the 11th and take the word of a madman, or defend this country? Given
that choice, I will defend America every time. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: Even though -- even though we did not find the
stockpiles we expected to find, Saddam Hussein had the capability of
making weapons of mass destruction, and he could have passed that
capability on to the enemy. That was a risk we could not afford to
take after September the 11th. Knowing what I know today, I would have
made the same decision. (Applause.) America and the world are safer
with Saddam Hussein sitting in a prison cell. (Applause.)

Now, almost two years after he voted for the war in Iraq, and seven
months after switching positions to declare himself the anti-war
candidate, my opponent has found a new nuance. He now agrees it was
the right decision to go into Iraq. See, after months of questioning
my motives, and even my credibility, he now agrees with me that even
though we did not find the stockpiles we thought we would find, knowing
everything we know today, he would have voted to go into Iraq and
remove Saddam Hussein from power. I want to thank him for clearing
that up. (Applause.) However, I warn you that there's still a little
more than 60 days left in the campaign for him to change his mind
again. (Laughter.)

We have more to do. I'm running because I understand that we must
continue to work with our friends and allies to aggressively pursue the
terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan and elsewhere. You cannot talk
sense to these people, see. You cannot negotiate with them. We can't
be blind to the realities of the world and hope for the best. We must
aggressively pursue them around the world so we do not have to face
them here at home. (Applause.)

We will continue to lead this world with confidence and moral
clarity. We put together a vast coalition of like-minded nations, who
are working to secure our people and to spread the peace. We've got
nearly 40 nations involved in Afghanistan, some 30 involved in Iraq,
over 60 involved in a Proliferation Security Initiative to interdict
technology and supplies to potentially build weapons of mass
destruction. We will continue to work and build our alliances over the
next four years. But I will never turn over America's national
security decisions to leaders of other countries. (Applause.)

We will keep our commitments to Afghanistan and Iraq so that they
become peaceful, democratic societies. It's in our interests that they
become peaceful and democratic societies. These countries are now
governed by two strong leaders, leaders who have set their countries on
the path to elections.

We have a clear goal in Afghanistan and Iraq. We want a peaceful
and democratic country to emerge that are allies in the war on terror.
Our military forces will help meet that goal by not only providing
security for a political process to develop, but by helping to train
Afghans and Iraqis so they get to defeat those who want to stop the
march of freedom in their own countries. We will complete this mission
as quickly as possible, so our troops do not stay a day longer than
necessary. (Applause.)

And I'm proud of our military. They're doing the hard work of
freedom and peace. (Applause.) I want to thank all the veterans who
are here today for setting such a fine example for those who wear the
uniform. (Applause.)

I have made a commitment to those who wear our uniform and to their
loved ones that they will have the resources they need to fight and win
the war against the terrorists. (Applause.) We are meeting that
commitment in Washington, D.C. Last September, while our troops were
in combat in Afghanistan and Iraq, I proposed supplemental funding to
support them in their missions. This legislation provided money for
body armor, vital equipment, hazard pay, health benefits, ammunition
and fuel and spare parts. It was necessary. It was an important piece
of legislation. We received great bipartisan support. So strong was
the bipartisan support that only 12 members of the United States Senate
voted against this vital funding -- two of whom are my opponent and his
running mate.

AUDIENCE: Boooo!

THE PRESIDENT: So I said, why did you make that vote? He said, I
actually voted for the $87 billion right before I voted against it. I
suspect you don't find a lot of people right here in Troy, Ohio who
talk like that. They then pressed him, and they said, don't you have
another explanation? He said, well, he's proud of the vote, and then
he finally said, it's just a complicated matter. There is nothing
complicated about supporting our troops in combat. (Applause.)

In our long run -- in the long-run, our security is not guaranteed
by force alone. We must work to change the conditions that give rise
to terror: poverty and hopelessness and resentment. A free and
peaceful Iraq and a free and peaceful Afghanistan will serve as
powerful examples in a neighborhood that is desperate for freedom.
Free countries do not export terror. Free countries listen to the
hopes and aspirations of their people. Free countries make the world a
more peaceful place. By serving the cause of liberty, we're bringing
hope to others, and that makes America more secure. By serving the
cause of liberty, we're making the world a more peaceful place. By
serving the cause of liberty, we're serving the deepest ideals of our
own country. Freedom is not America's gift to the world. Freedom is
the Almighty God's gift to each man and woman in this world.
(Applause.)

We've got more work to do to protect this homeland. I see
firefighters and police officers who are here with us today. I want to
thank the first responders for their hard work. (Applause.) You need
to know that cooperation at the federal level and state level and local
level has vastly improved since September the 11th, and it needs to
be. There's an enemy that lurks and still hates us. We have more work
to do. Yesterday I announced further reforms of intelligence-gathering
systems to make sure that we get the best information so we can respond
to threat to our country. It is essential that Congress renew the
Patriot Act. The Patriot Act gives our law enforcement vital tools to
break and find terrorist cells before they can affect America. No,
we're working hard to secure our ports and secure our borders. There's
a lot of good people working on your behalf to make this homeland more
secure.

But I will warn you, reform is not easy in Washington. There's a
lot of entrenched interests there. There's a lot of people who have
spent a lifetime in Washington and they want to defend the status quo.
It's not enough to advocate reform; you have to be able to get the job
done. And so when you're out campaigning on my behalf, when you're out
there registering people to vote, and then encouraging them to vote,
remind them that when it comes to reforming schools so we can increase
excellence in every classroom in America, we're getting the job done.
When it comes to health care for our seniors and for American families,
we're getting the job done. When it comes to expanding our economy,
defeating the recession, we're getting the job done. When it comes to
defending this homeland and spreading freedom and peace, we're getting
the job done. When it comes to electing a President, reelect somebody
who can get the job done. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: We're living in a time of change. It's a time of
change, and change can be unsettling. Government must recognize that
and government must stand side by side with workers and families during
this time of change. See, we have a difference of philosophy in this
race. I believe government ought to help, not give orders. I believe
ought to -- I believe ought to -- government ought to encourage people
to realize their dreams, not dictate to people how to achieve their
dreams. And there's a difference in philosophy that I intend to make
and clarify across this country. And one of the ways that government
can help people during times of change is to encourage an ownership
society, is to encourage people to own their own business. There's
nothing better than an America for people to know that the
entrepreneurial spirit is strong and alive and well.

In order to provide security during a time of change, we ought to
encourage health care accounts that people own and call their own, that
they can take from job to job. I see we've got a lot of younger
workers here, and I want to thank you for coming. But you need to make
sure you listen carefully to the debate on Social Security. Baby
boomers like me are just fine when it comes to the fiscal sanity of
Social Security. People just starting in the work place better
understand that we must think differently about how to strengthen
Social Security. I believe the best way to do so is to make sure
younger workers have the option of taking some of their own money and
putting them in personal savings accounts that they can call their
own. (Applause.)

In a changing world, when the workplace has changed, we've got to
make sure our work rules are family-friendly. That includes flex-time
and comp-time to allow moms and dads to spend more quality time with
their children.

In a changing world, there's nothing like owning your own home to
provide hope and stability. Home ownership rates are at an all-time
high in America. (Applause.) We will continue to promote policy that
encourages that moment when somebody opens the door of their dwelling
and says, "Welcome to my house." That's what we love to hear. We love
to hear that phrase, "Welcome to my piece of property." When you own
something, you have a vital stake in the future of the United States of
America. (Applause.)

In a time of change, there are some things that won't change, the
values we try to live by -- courage and compassion, reverence and
integrity; our belief in liberty and opportunity and the non-negotiable
demands of human dignity. (Applause.) In a time of change, we will
support the institutions that give us direction and purpose -- our
families, our schools, our religious congregations. (Applause.)

We believe -- we stand for institutions like marriage and family,
which are the foundations of society. (Applause.) We stand for a
culture of life in which every person matters and every person counts.
(Applause.) We stand for judges who faithfully interpret the law,
instead of legislating from the bench. (Applause.) We stand for a
culture of responsibility in America. Listen, the culture is beginning
to change from one that has said, if it feels good, just go ahead and
do it, if you've got a problem, blame somebody else -- to a culture in
which each of us understands we're responsible for the decisions we
make in life.

If you are fortunate enough to be a mother or a father, you're
responsible for loving your child with all your heart and all your
soul. (Applause.) If you're worried about the quality of the
education in Troy, Ohio, you're responsible for doing something about
it. (Applause.) If you're a CEO in corporate America, you are
responsible for telling the truth to your shareholders and your
employees. (Applause.) And in a responsibility society, each of us is
responsible for loving our neighbor, just like we'd like to be loved
ourselves.

The true strength of this country is the hearts and souls of the
American citizens. I'll continue to rally the armies of compassion
over the next four years, call upon those loving souls who have heard
the call to love a neighbor so that we can change America one heart,
one conscience, and one soul at a time. (Applause.)

For all Americans, these years in our history will always stand
apart. You know, there are quiet times in the life of a nation when
little is expected of its leaders. This isn't one of those times.
This is a time where we need firm resolve, clear vision, and a deep
belief in the values that make America a great place. (Applause.)

None of us will ever forget that era when -- that week when one era
ended and another began. On September the 14th, 2001, I stood in the
ruins of the Twin Towers. It is a day that I will never forget. There
were workers in hard-hats yelling at me, "Whatever it takes." I
remember walking the line, thanking the firefighters and rescuers who
were there, and a guy with bloodshot eyes grabbed me by the arm, stared
square in my eyes, and said, "Do not let me down." Moments I will
never forget. I wake up every morning thinking about how to better
protect America. I will never relent in defending this country,
whatever it takes. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: We have come through much together. We have been
through a lot together. We have done a lot of hard work. We're moving
this country forward by extending freedom around the world and
opportunity here at home. During the next four years, I'll continue to
work to spread opportunity and ownership to every corner of the
country. I want every citizen to realize the great promise of our
blessed land. We will continue to work to pass the enduring values of
our country on to another generation. We will lead the cause of
freedom and peace. And we will prevail. (Applause.)

When I traveled your state four years ago, I made a pledge to our
citizens that if you honored me with this great responsibility, I would
uphold the dignity and the honor of the office to which I had been
elected. With your hard work, with your help, I will do so for the
next four years.

May God bless. Thank you for coming. Thank you all, very much.
(Applause.)